DISD Superintendent Elizalde Rewarded for Failing Schools
Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde received a $57K pay increase from the school board despite doing ZERO about the dozens of failing schools in Black neighborhoods.
Elizalde and DISD President Justin Henry have said they don't believe students of color deserve to choose the best schools for them.
Superintendent may be using that extra money to buy designer clothes, a fancy car, and lavish vacations all at the expense of Dallas students of color.
In the Dallas Independent School District (DISD), a concerning narrative unfolds under Superintendent Dr. Stephanie Elizalde. Her recent unanimous approval for a $57,000 raise starkly contrasts with the modest 3% increase afforded to teachers and support staff. This decision, far from being an isolated incident, is emblematic of a deeper systemic issue within DISD.
Dr. Elizalde’s appointment was not a fresh start for DISD but rather a continuation of the disturbing legacies of Michael Hinojosa and Miles Morath. Her tenure, thus far, has mirrored Hinojosa’s in its failure to uplift minority children, particularly those at or below the poverty line. The steep decline in academic performance and literacy rates among these students persists, unabated by her leadership. They come up with any range of excuses to justify a system that they have set up to fail children by putting them on the school to prison pipeline.
Distractions from Core Educational Issues
Amid this crisis of literacy, DISD is caught up in distractions that do little to address the core educational challenges. The district is embroiled in controversies over “book bans” and gender awareness programs, which, while important in their own right, divert attention from the pressing issue of student engagement in essential coursework, literacy and vocational training.
The Board of Trustees and Dr. Elizalde’s decision to collaborate with Judge Clay Jenkins in expanding mental health testing and funding psychiatric contractors is yet another example of misplaced priorities. Instead of addressing the fundamental educational needs of children at risk, there’s a pivot towards medication as a solution for special needs children. This approach not only oversimplifies the complex needs of these students but also overlooks the critical importance of foundational learning.
Perhaps most telling of her priorities is the decision to use taxpayer funds to sue the Texas Education Agency. This legal battle, while consuming valuable resources, does nothing to enhance the quality of education or address the dire needs of the district’s most vulnerable students. Instead of making adjustments and responding to TEA’s new guidelines, she balked and chose to maintain a shroud of secrecy from parents and waste student time with a court battle to maintain a status quo system that has actually aided in the downfall of many students. This is consistent with SuperIntendent protecting the system at the cost of the student.
The Overwhelming Scale of DISD
The sheer number of schools within DISD – 237 – is a behemoth that is increasingly difficult to manage effectively. This vast number of institutions within a single district raises questions about the efficacy of resource allocation and the quality of oversight.
The Robinhood tax scheme, designed to redistribute property tax revenue from wealthier to poorer districts, is a band-aid solution that fails to address the root causes of educational inequality. This approach not only puts a strain on taxpayers but also perpetuates a cycle of dependency without fostering genuine improvement in educational standards.
When do we address the idea that in light of the scandals, the inflated grades and the disastrous outcomes that leaves the Black community as the permanent underclass, is decentralization too big of an ask?
Is the DISD too big to fail?
Should there be a SuperIntendent for each District?
Elizalde is the third incarnation of Michael Hinojosa
In essence, Dr. Elizalde’s tenure can be seen as ‘Michael Hinojosa Mk 3.0’ – a continuation of failed policies and an inability to deliver meaningful change. The failings of Hinojosa, marked by ineffective leadership and declining student outcomes, seem to be replicated rather than rectified under Elizalde’s leadership.
The time for superficial measures and misguided priorities in DISD must end. Dr. Elizalde’s leadership, thus far, has been a continuation of past failures rather than a beacon of progress. The community deserves a leader who prioritizes fundamental education, addresses the literacy crisis head-on, and innovates to uplift every student, especially those most in need. Real change in DISD requires more than just a new face; it demands a new direction.
We must confront the harsh reality: DISD, under Dr. Elizalde’s leadership, is not on a trajectory towards improvement but is instead circling the drain of past failures. The district’s massive scale, with 237 schools, has become an unwieldy beast, more challenging to steer towards progress. This overwhelming number of institutions begs the question: Is bigger necessarily better, or is it a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth?
The Robinhood Tax Scheme: A Failing Solution
Due to how the DISD absconds with Dallas property taxes, which this year was around two billion dollars. The Robinhood tax scheme, while noble in its intent to level the playing field, is akin to putting a band-aid on a gaping wound. It does little to address the systemic issues plaguing our schools. Long story short, the money that is meant to aid failing schools never makes it to these facilities or the students forced to go there. This approach, instead of fostering self-sufficiency and innovation within each school, perpetuates a cycle of dependency and mediocrity. We are left with a system that is more focused on redistributing wealth than on effectively using resources to make a real difference in the quality of education. This also cause a spectrum of animosity between the classes. Those who have to pay these absurdly high property taxes do not witness any improvement in these underperforming schools, while those in need never get to see these fund improve the quality of life in their neighborhoods. It is a farce and what this money really feeds into is a system that has become a fiefdom for the educratic grift that has seized the public education system in Dallas as well as many urban areas in Texas.
Simply put, there is more to having successful schools than dedicating brick and mortar budgets to buildings and real estate. This is not about athletic facilities, tech centers and libraries, it is about making sure the demographic of the faculties match the children that we should be seeking to save, and providing provocative pathways out of poverty and instilling a winning attitude towards working and problem solving.
The Echoes of Hinojosa’s Legacy
Dr. Elizalde, in many ways, mirrors the shortcomings of her predecessor, Michael Hinojosa. Under Hinojosa, DISD saw a period marked by underachievement and stagnation, particularly for minority students. This pattern continues under Elizalde’s stewardship. The promise of change and improvement remains just that – a promise, unfulfilled and fading into the background of bureaucratic inertia.
The Failings of Hinojosa’s Tenure
Reflecting on Hinojosa’s tenure, we see a series of missed opportunities and a lack of visionary leadership. Keep in mind that was the same SuperIntendent that closed advanced achievement centers of Learning for Black children in South Dallas...and restructured them into schools that had to address the needs of the growing migrant community back in the day. He was also the SuperIntendent who saw fit to feed children spoiled and moldy food that wasn’t fit for swine...and had a history of hiding criminal activity in the DISD; how can we forget the brutal slaying of the teaching aide Sharla Sims?
The worst thing about him and how he would bullshit his way thru budgets and restructuring Black children out of a decent education was how he simultaneously was in opposition of school choice. He would deliver piss poor public education facilities and then deny charter schools a chance to provide a community brokered solution. He set up and independent school district whose intent was keeping Black people poor while serving his community and working his way towards adjacency to the upper class.
His inability to significantly improve literacy rates, reduce the achievement gap, and implement sustainable, effective educational reforms set a precedent that Dr. Elizalde seems all too comfortable following.
When the Board of Trustees, who included both Maxie Johnson and Justin Henry unanimously voted her in, they said the quiet part out loud; they had no intention whatsoever of providing what poor Black children needed to succeed. Stabilized environments that helped address behavioral setbacks, vocational training and shop classes, awareness of advancement through industry. After all that Michael Hinojosa did to sabotage the Black community, the most these gatekeepers had to offer were ideas of equity and programs that suited diploma holders more than the children they were tasked to help in the first place.
If you are Black and behind the ball in this economy, the DISD is a system of peril, one that seems more concerned with maintaining the status quo than with shaking up the system for the betterment of its students. The focus on external battles, like the lawsuit against the Texas Education Agency, diverts attention and resources from where they are most needed – in the classrooms, with our teachers and students.
The time for apathy, excuses, complacency and educratic stonewalling is over. The students of DISD, particularly those from marginalized communities, cannot afford any more delays in receiving the quality education they deserve. We need bold, transformative action that goes beyond the surface level. We need a leader who is not a mere echo of past failures but a harbinger of genuine progress. By granting this exhorbidant raise to Dr. Elizelde the Board of Trustees have cast their hand against the concept of educational freedom. They prefer to pay an Educratic who operates across a statewide revolving door a sum of 375,000 dollars a year while an epidemic of illiteracy and apathy has infected our children that are faced with a challenging tomorrow. Our children’s futures depend on whether or not we can decide what kind of educational environment is the best fit for the humanity that they were born into, not how the system seeks to classify them.
